The Chinese Communist Party is offering monetary rewards to those who report the presence of home churches in their communities, the magazine Bitter Winter reported on Thursday.
The rewards appear to be an expansion of a program already in place in the province of Heilongjiang, reported earlier this year. In the city of Nenjiang, residents were offered a reward of 5,000 RMB (about $700 U.S.) if they reported suspected illegal religious activity to the authorities.
According to Bitter Winter, the “incentive” program has been replicated in other cities around the country, and rewards have swelled to up to 100,000 RMB, which is about $14,000 U.S.
Last month, in Hainan province, the Public Security Department posted a “Notice on Rewarding Those Who Report Clues on Xie Jiao Illegal and Criminal Activities.” “Xie Jiao” is a Chinese phrase that means “evil cult.” In practice, it refers to any religious activity that is not sanctioned by the government.
Hainan officials are offering up to 100,000 RMB, depending on how accurate and useful the “tip” is. Read more
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News category: News Shorts, World.
